Object Collections

The Laboratory of Anthropology carries on a seventy-year history of research into the indigenous cultures of the North American Southwest. Through fieldwork, directed collections acquisitions, and analysis, the Laboratory has developed holdings of some 5 - 10 million objects from archaeological sites and Native American communities of the greater Southwest. Today, the Laboratory serves as the major repository for materials and excavation records from public and private archaeological fieldwork in New Mexico.

The Museum’s incomparable collection is built upon a foundation of nearly a century of research and acquisition.

Individually Catalogued Collections
The Individually Cataloged Collections consist of approximately 75,000 objects including archaeological, ethnographic, and fine art pieces.
Archaeological Research Collections
The Archaeological Research Collections consist of bulk archaeological materials from approximately 18,000 sites, located primarily in New Mexico.
The H.P. Mera Room
Representative samples of ceramic and lithic artifacts surface collected from a fraction of these sites can be examined and compared in the H.P. Mera Collections Study Room.

Between these collections divisions, the Museum holds a record of Southwest Native American material culture extending from the Paleoindian Clovis Period of approximately 9,500 BC through the 20th century that can be equaled by few other institutions.

Please visit the Collections Policies and Procedures area of this web site for information about object loans, research access, and submission of archaeological materials to the collections.

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